Dixie Carter’ major announcement made today is that Mahabili Shera, Ethan Carter III and Rebel will be going to India with Executive Vice President of TV and Talent Relations John Gaburick from 10/19 to 10/22.
They did not make the announcement of the expected television tapings in India from 11/29 to 12/5. Talent has already been told of the India tour. The tour will likely be announced in two weeks as TNA and Sony SIX, its television partners in India, are scheduled to make a key announcement during that week.
The wrestlers will be appearing in Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Bangalore.
The story is that Gaburick and Shera will also be scouting for new talent from India to add to the roster.
Myzteziz began the show coming out to a mixed reaction. He cut a sort of rudo promo on Rey Misterio Jr. & also La Sociedad. He specifically said he doesn’t want to join them and doesn’t need help winning his matches unlike wrestlers such as Fantasma & Pentagon. He left to more boo’s than cheers.
AAA Reina De Reinas Champion Taya Valkyrie vs. Goya Kong vs La Hiedra vs Lady Shani vs Lady Maravilla
This was Taya’s first title defense since winning the title 18 months ago at Triplemania. Both Lady Shani & Lady Maravilla were listed as surprises although Shani debuted 2 weeks ago in Monterrey so it was presumed she’d be one of the mystery women. Lady Maravilla is relatively unknown but has been working the Mexico City area & training under Gran Apache (who is the head AAA trainer). This was one fall instead of elimination and no tags needed so it was all action. Maravilla looked good in her debut & Goya Kong seemed extra motivated – both doing and taking lots of moves you wouldn’t expect someone her size to do.
They did a dive train ending with Goya doing a somersault off the apron onto everyone. At one point Lady Maravilla did a great combo submission/German Suplex spot. Finish saw Taya use her Northern Lights Suplex/Double Stomp combo on Hiedra to keep her title. Match exceeded all expectations and was actually quite good.
AAA Tag Team Champions Joe Lider/Pentagon Jr. (champs) vs Jack Evans/Angelico vs Steve Pain/Daga
Even though they’ve been portrayed as not being on the same page on TV, Lider/Pentagon/Daga all came out wearing Perros Del Mal shirts which was confusing. Steve Pain must have not got the memo. This was the usual AAA multi-team match with everyone taking turns doing their big moves while other guys just watched from the outside. Angelico hit a big running somersault dive onto a pile at one point. Later Angelico picked up Daga in a fireman’s carry and Jack moonsaulted off Daga’s chest to the floor on Pentagon. The match was going well until Joe Lider brought out thumbtacks for no reason at all and took forever setting up a suplex off the top rope onto them.
Daga hit a gorgeous somersault dive onto a pile and then brawled up onto the stage with Angelico where they were met by Myzteziz who superkicked Angelico. Myzteziz then hit the ringside area seemingly to help one of the rudo teams but instead dragged Pentagon outside the ring to break up a pin after a Package Piledriver and then crotched him on the ringpost as Joe Lider stood by watching and being confused. Steve Pain got a great nearfall on Jack Evans but then Jack pinned him with the bridging backslide to get the win. Very good match with some great moves & hopefully the end of Pentagon Jr. being wasted in the tag division.
Drago/Fenix vs Brian Cage/Mesias
The rudos took the advantage early on with Cage doing lots of his usual power moves on the tecnicos. They built up to the tecnico comeback which included a slingshot rana to the floor by Drago & a double stomp on the apron from Fenix to Mesias which looked absolutely brutal. Really good back and forth from that point on with the tecnicos doing all their great flying spots & the rudos throwing them around when they could catch them. Fenix assisted Drago into a huge corkscrew dive and then hit a Brillo Cometa (2nd rope step-up double corkscrew) which looked spectacular! They did lots of nearfalls which got great reactions.
They teased problems with Cage/Mesias at one point but it went nowhere. At the end Fenix went for a springboard frankensteiner off the top rope but Mesias caught him and power bombed him at the same time as Cage hit his finisher on Drago for the win. After the match Mesias stole Fenix’s mask and a little child in a Fenix mask at ringside was shown looking very sad. This was another very good match that really was the perfect type of match that should have been on Triplemania two months ago when more eyes were on the product.
The entire roster came out to honor Antonio Pena. Crowd was respectful & started a ‘Tono’ chant as Marisela Pena looked to be on the verge of tears.
Copa Antonio Pena
This was the yearly 10 man Royal Rumble style elimination match where participants entered every 30 seconds. The entrances are generally a formality which is why they breeze through them. Aero Star started with Hijo De Pirata Morgan. Aero took him out with a bullet tope suicida immediatly. Averno was next and brought a chair to attack Aero Star. Nino Hamburguesa followed and hit everyone with a somersault dive through the ropes. Electro Shock was next followed by La Parka. The buzzer then hit and the surprise luchador came out… TAURUS! A new charachter who appears to resemble a bull or if you’re a longtime AAA fan – surprise 2007 Triplemania wrestler The Animal. He was immediatly put over as a huge threat by eliminating Aero Star, Pirata & Nino Hamburguesa as Cibernetico, Blue Demon Jr. & Chessman hit the ring to round out the participants. Electro Shock was dumped by Averno & Chessman.
In a complete stunner as Cibernetico & Demon were brawling near the ropes, Taurus walked over and ELIMINATED THEM BOTH AT THE SAME TIME! La Parka eliminated Chessman and then Averno soon afterwards setting the stage for him to win this match for a 4th time for no reason at all… except no! Parka got cocky and as his back was turned Taurus snuck up behind him and threw him over the top rope for the shocking win in his debut! Crowd was stunned. Taurus got his trophy and left as the announcers speculated who he was and what an impressive debut it was. Not much of a match in terms of quality but a great way to introduce a new charachter in a strong way & a memorable moment for sure.
(Should note big Lucha Underground fan Casey who is @luchagringo on twitter noted there may be a Lucha Underground tie in to all this as there’s a scene in season 1 where Dario is in his office writing names down & one name happens to be TAURUS. Also, this Taurus charachter resembles a bull… the same type of bull Dario had on his desk throughout season 1 that was focused upon many times before scene cutaways.)
Rey Misterio Jr./Psycho Clown/Garza Jr. vs Texano Jr./Hijo Del Fantasma/Myzteziz
Garza Jr. was the surprise wrestler. He’s the ex-Hijo de Ninja from Monterrey and is part of the Garza extended family which is why he used this name. He is not Hector Gara’s son. Crowd didn’t really know him but they got into him because of his looks and he was doing a Hector Garza tribute act right down to tearing off the pants & doing his same style clothesline. Match started with Rey being presented flowers only for Myzteziz to destroy them. He ran from Rey early on but was dropkicked to the floor by Psycho Clown. The tecnicos hit a triple tope but soon afterwards the rudos took over. The storyline was Myzteziz was all over Rey but didn’t want to take part in any triple teaming by his teammates. Rey led the comeback with a rana off the apron to the floor.
Garza Jr. did a moonsault dive to the floor. Psycho Clown went crazy with his belt and smacked everyone including Tirantes Jr. in the face. At one point Rey Jr. got assisted into a silla on the floor on Myzteziz which was a neat spot. Finish saw Psycho take out Texano with a somersault dive, Rey Jr. hit Fantasma with an asai moonsault dive & then Myzteziz caught Garza Jr. coming off the ropes with a backcracker and put him away with a Swanton Bomb. Crowd was 100% boo’ing Myzteziz by the end of the match. Rey Jr. cut a promo with the announcers afterwards saying you can’t win all the time but Myzteziz should realize he didn’t pin him and they’ll meet again soon.
AAA Mega Heavyweight Champion Alberto El Patron vs Johnny Mundo
Heavy on the Mexico vs USA theme. Mundo had Brian Cage with him, Alberto had Psycho Clown. Alberto hit a wild tope suicida early on. They set up a table on the floor. Mundo started running from Alberto including hurdling into the crowd and stealing chips from a vendor to throw at Alberto who was chasing him. Alberto eventually caught Johnny trying to sneak under the ring but Johnny found water and blinded Alberto to take the advantage. He put Alberto through one of the tables at ringside. Slowest paced match of the night so far. Alberto hit his tree-of-woe double stomp for a nearfall and the Guerrero Especial for another nearfall. Mundo hit his running knee for a nearfall. Mundo escaped the armbar at one point by grabbing the ropes. Mundo went for his kick off the ropes but both Alberto & referee Maya ducked to tease a ref bump… except one second later Maya did get taken out by Alberto by accident.
Alberto had the match won but no referee so he signalled to send someone else out. Who else would come but Hijo De Tirantes! Everyone knew the usual AAA bullshit was coming. It looked like Mundo was gonna try to suplex Alberto over the top to the floor through another table but Alberto countered into the armbar. Mundo refused to give up and held on long enough for Cage to slid in a guitar (???) and Mundo smashed Alberto over the head with it. The crowd hated this because Tirantes didn’t call the DQ and they throught Alberto was about to get screwed for the 3rd straight time in his hometown. But as Mundo covered, Tirantes counted 1… paused… and then raised Alberto’s hand for the DQ win as confetti was shot all over. Kind of a flat finish but protects Mundo for the rematch & there was no time to be angry because Cage hit the ring and both Alberto/Psycho Clown were beat down.
Rey Jr. ran out for save and hit a double 619 only for Myzteziz to hit the ring and take out Rey including stealing his mask. La Sociedad then hit the ring in a very eerie Triplemania-esque moment but there was no confusion here this time… they went right after Myzteziz and beat him down. Fantasma cut a promo on Myzteziz saying he should have listened to La Sociedad instead of opposing them. Cibernetico then broke a guitar over Myzteziz’s head. Alberto/Rey regrouped on the floor and never helped Myzteziz. Mundo cut a promo in half English/half Spanish on Alberto. Eventually Alberto/Rey hit the ring to chase off La Sociedad and stand tall. Alberto closed the show cutting a heavy pro-Mexico promo.
Unlike Triplemania this show at least ended with the lines firmly drawn. Myzteziz is a loner with no friends or any loyalty to either tecnicos or rudos. He wants Rey and only Rey. La Soceidad are done trying to recruit Myzteziz & Fantasma is in place as the new leader. Alberto/Rey Jr./Psycho Clown are the top tecnicos opposing them.
Notes/Opinion:
AAA needed to deliver and certainly did. The feed was perfect the entire night with only a minor glitch or two reported from many folks watching on twitter. The show had two memorable debuts to freshen things up & the wrestling was top notch with all 6 matches ranging from good to great. The live crowd was into everything & it felt like a major show even with little build on TV.
The most impressive part of the show was for the first time in MANY YEARS AAA managed to avoid the things they’ve been addicted to for the longest time. There was no stupid rudo referee nonsense & aside from Joe Lider pulling out thumbtacks for no reason there was not a single moment a match turned into amateur hour. Some could argue the main event finish was weak but it appears this is heading somewhere instead of just being a fuck finish for the sake of doing one.
Pretty much this show was the anti-Triplemania. Unfortunately there were likely way more eyes on Triplemania but if AAA keeps doing shows like this hopefully they can win those fans back. First thing’s first though – hopefully the people running AAA read why people enjoyed this show & keep to this format rather than reverting back to the things that keep turning so many new fans off (read: Hijo de Tirantes).
TNA’s Signature PPV, Bound for Glory, is live on PPV from Concord, North Carolina. Ethan Carter III defends the TNA World Heavyweight title in a 3 way main event against Drew Galloway and Matt Hardy, with Jeff Hardy as the special guest referee. Bobby Roode defends the King of the Mountain title against Lashley. Kurt Angle, in what may be his final match in professional wrestling, faces Eric Young. The card is rounded out by a Gauntlet match for a World title shot, Gail Kim defending the Knockouts title, The Wolves defending the tag team titles and Tigre Uno defending the TNA X Division title in an Ultimate X match.
The action gets underway at 8PM ET. We are looking for your thoughts on the show, as well as the Madison Square Garden show, the UFC 192 show, and AAA’s Heroies en Mortlaes so send a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle as well as a best and worst match to dave@wrestlingobserver.com
ULTIMATE X OPENS THE SHOW FOR THE TITLE: DJ ZEMA ION VS. MANIK VS. ANDREW EVERETT VS. TIGRE UNO
This was one big move after the other. It looked like Uno got hurt doing a 450 off the top rope to the floor on Ion but it was his role to win. Somehow he gutted himself to climbing the rope and pulling the belt down. He had to be helped off he cable after he won. Just a series of big moves. Everett looked really good including doing a springboard shooting star press. Uno and Everett were both on he cable and Uno kicked Everett off and he took a big bump on his back off the cable.
Shane Helms came out and was called the longest reigning cruiserweight champion in the history of pro wrestling. He was called Gregory Shane Helms and he looked like he was Kevin Nash standing next to Uno. They shook hands.
The arena is being kept really dark.
Ethan Carter III came out with the belt. He complained about Dixie making it a three way with Jeff Hardy as referee. I have no idea why he did this interview.
Thus far no hint of the secret third announcer.
GAUNTLET FOR THE GOLD, A ROYAL RUMBLE STYLE MATCH FOR A TITLE SHOT:
Ken Anderson vs. Jessie Godderz are starting. The order of entrance after was Eli Drake, Al Snow, Aiden O’Shea, Robbie E, Mahabili Shera, Tyrus, Chris Melendez, Tommy Dreamer, Abyss and The Pope. The Pope came in from his announcing desk and then eliminated himself because he was scared of Tyrus and Abyss. This match was awful, even worse because a world title shot was at stake and it was total comedy. At one point everyone in the ring was doing the Shera dance. Dreamer was pretending he was Dusty Rhodes with polka dots, even though Dusty made it clear he hates the polka dots. The story was Tyrus played monster, eliminated a ton of people and then pinned Anderson when they were the last two. So he can pick whoever he wants to challenge. EC 3 came out and said how they were challenging for the tag titles but Tyrus said he’s done EC 3 all kinds of favors and wants a world heavyweight title shot.
EDDIE EDWARDS & DAVEY RICHARDS VS. TREVOR LEE & BRIAN MYERS FOR TAG TITLES
Real good match as you’d expect. They got heat on Edwards most of the way. A lot of good near falls and a strong showing by Lee. The finish saw Richards use a superplex off the top on Lee and then he and Edwards used Chasing the Dragon on Lee and Richards pinned him.
Drew Galloway interview talked about the title match said a Triple Threat is a no DQ match, I’m willing to kill myself. That was supposed to mean something. He said he was given curve balls of Matt Hardy being added to the match and Jeff Hardy being made referee.
BOBBY ROODE VS. BOBBY LASHLEY FOR THE KING OF THE MOUNTAIN TITLE
Roode retained his title clean with the Roode bomb. This was a match where they kept kicking out of each others’ moves. This could have been a great match with a different crowd, but this crowd just wasn’t into it until the very end due to no face vs. heel dynamic. Roode used the Roode bomb and Lashley kicked out. Lashley used a spear but Roode kicked out. Roode used a spear and Lashley kicked out and Lashley used a Roode bomb and Lashley kicked out.
Matt Hardy out for an interview. Put over how big the night is, grew up in Cameron, we wanted to be world tag team champions just once, then we both wanted to be world champions and Jeff has done it a few times. Tonight is my night. Can’t think of a better place to do it than tonight, said his father, his wife and baby are all here and Jeff is the referee.
They showed the Earl Hebner Hall of Fame thing. They showed maybe 20 seconds of it. Billy Corgan came out and wanted to show highlights of Earl Hebner’s career. Claimed Earl was a household name. Called him the greatest referee in history. He came out to the ring to a nice reaction.
GAIL KIM VS. AWESOME KONG FOR KNOCKOUTS TITLE
Bad match. Kong is just hurting so bad she can’t do much of anything. Kim retained with eat defeat and a small package. They did a spot where Kong went for a chair but Chef Robert Irvine grabbed the chair from her. Earl Hebner argued with Irvine and Kong gave her an implant buster on the floor onto chairs but Kim still kicked out of the pin.
ERIC YOUNG VS. KURT ANGLE
Kurt came out and announced it was a no DQ match. Young piledrove Angle and they sold it like Angle was injured. The doctor came out and stopped the match but the bell never rang. They were helping Angle out but Young attacked the doctor and Pat Kenney who were helping Angle out. Young attacked Angle and Angle told him the match was over. But the match continued. Angle made a comeback and escaped from an attempted piledriver off the middle rope and reversed out of a sunset flip and grabbed the ankle lock. Young made the ropes, but since it was no DQ, Angle never broke the hold and pulled him to the center and got the tap. So Angle won even though it was stopped nine minutes earlier.
EC 3 VS. DREW GALLOWAY VS. MATT HARDY FOR THE TNA TITLE
Matt won the title by pinning Galloway. Thne he brought his son and wife in the ring. Then the Hardys brought their dad into the ring. The match had its moments and Matt and Kurt were really the only guys to get strong reactions on the show. They did a lot of near falls. EC 3 complained to Dixie Carter and John Gaburick and threw Gaburck over a table.
Matt kicked out of the one percenter. Then EC 3 wanted to get DQ’d so he kicked Galloway low right in front of Jeff, but it was no DQ to begin with. EC 3 got a chair but Jeff took it away. EC 3 thne told Jeff to hit Matt with a chair which made no sense. EC 3 slapped Jeff in the face. Jeff hit EC 3 with a chair and Matt hit the twist of fate on EC 3. Galloway then hit EC 3 with a running kick and Hardy used the twist of fate on Galloway for the pin.
Most people would agree that the WWE “Divas Revolution” has not been the success that the WWE was hoping for. Not only are the matches nowhere near the quality that many of the same women have been having in NXT but the characters simply haven’t been getting over to the audience. The failure to properly introduce performers that really could be money-drawing acts on the main roster demonstrates many of the things that are wrong with the WWE.
Mistake #1: Telling Rather Than Showing
Fuelled by the success of the women on NXT and the wider prominence given to female athletes in the wake of the rise of Ronda Rousey and success of the American women’s soccer team, WWE seemed to assume that fans were thirsting for women to be given greater prominence on the main roster. This was an odd assumption to make considering that not only have WWE fans long been conditioned to ignore women’s wrestling, and that even in MMA much of the hardcore fanbase were reluctant to embrace female fighting. The WWE should have realised that for the new division to work they needed to gradually win over fans rather than presenting them with a fati acompli.
Mistake #2: Being Stuck In The Past
The WWE used to understand that whenever you’re introducing something new you need to jettison something old. To bring in Hulk Hogan, they got rid of Bob Backlund. To bring in the New Generation they got rid of the Hulkamania veterans. To bring in the ‘Attitude Era’, they removed the cartoonish and childish tropes they had previously relied upon. Having decided that their old approach to women’s wrestling was no longer working, they needed to clearly show that this to the audience, many of whom never liked the pre-existing product. This should have involved ditching old terminology, phasing out existing wrestlers and revamping how feuds and matches were presented.
Instead the WWE have tried to blend the old and the new, and as a consequence the new breed of women’s wrestlers look increasingly interchangeable from the old divas they’re meant to be replacing. Which of course, was exactly what happened when the then NXT Women’s Champion Paige joined the main roster back in 2013.
Mistake #3: Having the Wrong Priorities
Throughout its history, WCW was hamstrung by its membership of a larger conglomerate. The need to be sensitive to be the whims of its corporate overlords meant it could never move as nimbly as a WWF that was purely focused on making as much money from pro-wrestling as possible. Alas, today’s WWE resembles WCW more than it does WWF in this regard. Due to the need to please its broadcast partners and sponsors, the WWE only occassionally focuses on what is required to please its fans.
The women’s division has fallen foul of these split priorities. The obvious move when introducing the NXT Women would be to remove the Bella Twins from the division due to how synonymous they are with their old approach towards women’s wrestling. Alas the WWE doesn’t want to do this because Total Divas is a rare example of a ‘successful’ spin-off and the Bellas have long been its star characters.
Mistake #4: Not Understanding that Less is More
Even during the peak of Trish Stratus’ career, fans often saw women’s matches as so unimportant that they used them as an excuse for a bathroom break. Any attempt to re-launch the division needed to break this habit. NXT achieved this by quickly promoting the women to be the co-main event, and on occasion, the main event.
Regrettably WWE has not followed this model as rather than invest time in building up to a few key women’s matches every month, the WWE has decided to throw out two meaningless but lengthy matches on every edition of RAW. In many ways, nothing has changed except that the bathroom breaks have gotten longer.
Mistake #5: Exposing Their Performers Limitations
The glut of women’s matches is an even bigger mistake when you consider the performers involved. All of the NXT women have relatively little experience inside the pro-wrestling ring. However, they have put on great matches due to their innate athleticism and willingness to obsessively plan and practice their matches. That of course is a good thing, pro-wrestling is about creating illusions, and if thorough preparation hides their weaknesses then that’s something to celebrate.
However maintaining the illusion does impose limitations on the product. If the performers need to rehearse their matches, then they must be given adequate time beforehand to do so. This is something those booking NXT understood very well but WWE is so wedded to booking RAW the night before that they are incapable of learning from themselves.
Mistake #6: Putting a McMahon’s Ego First
Ever since she started celebrating her friendship with Ronda Rousey, it’s become clear that Stephanie McMahon has alighted on advancing the position of women within the WWE as a cause that can burnish her real-world feminist credentials. That would be fine if she was content with focusing on making the women’s division a success and then taking credit away from television. Alas she’s demanded that it be focused around her on television. She was the person to get to engage with Rousey at Wrestlemania 31, she was the one to finally stand-up to the Bella Twins, she was the one to introduce the NXT women to RAW and she was the one to who made the telling intervention that finally allowed Charlotte to win the title. The result has been that on television the ‘Divas Revolution’ has come across as a top-down imposition from a heel authority figure that deep-down most fans realise has had a negative impact on the product in real life.
Mistake #7: Pushing the Brand Rather Than a Superstar
When UFC introduced a women’s division, they built the entire project around one person. They understood that if they could get Ronda Rousey over as a credible champion then fans would naturally start caring about her prospective challengers. To that end, for the first eighteen months of women’s UFC, every fight was broadcast in the context of developing new challengers for Rousey.
WWE have shown no such focus. Rather than alighting on one of the NXT women and building the division around her, they’ve thrown three of them out onto the main roster at the same time. They’ve done this because they think that pushing a brand such as ‘Divas Revolution’ is more important than making fans care about individual wrestlers. This is an obvious misreading of their history. ‘Hulkamania’ was built around Hulk Hogan, ‘WWF Attitude’ was built around Stone Cold Steve Austin and today’s PG-Era is clearly built around John Cena. Fans gravitate to stars, not corporate buzz words.
Mistake #8 Lack of Prior Planning
All these mistakes all add up to that most common WWE problem of all; not having a clear plan. The lack of a clear plan means that the WWE has not properly anticipated let alone address the very really challenges they would face in revamping their women’s division.
That of course raises the question as to what such a plan should have looked like, something that I answer Monday in the final part of this look at the Divas Revolution.
We are awaiting more details on this, but Bray Wyatt suffered a bad hand cut and a head cut in his WWE house show match Saturday night with Roman Reigns in Bangor, ME.
The injuries took place during the match which was stopped while the trainer taped up his hand after it was nailed with a Kendo stick. The hand injury, which was said to be bleeding more than his head, seemed worse than the head injury. The match resumed and Reigns won the match as he does at all the house shows. Doctors came out to inspect both cuts.
Welcome to tonight’s live coverage of the WWE live from Madison Square Garden, airing on the WWE Network. The entire show is scheduled to air on the network and will be headlined by a steel cage match for the United States championship as champion John Cena takes on Seth Rollins.
Two other matches — Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar, and WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day versus the Dudley Boyz have also been heavily promoted. In addition, Rusev vs. Dolph Ziggler, Chris Jericho vs. I-C Champion Kevin Owens and Randy Orton vs. Sheamus are on the bill.
Show opens with a short video highlighting the steel cage match tonight, as well as the Brock Lesnar/Big Show match.
Rich Brennan, JBL and Bryon Saxton are on commentary.
Sheamus and Rusev vs. Randy Orton and Dolph Ziggler
Sheamus/Orton and Ziggler/Rusev were both promoted as singles bouts previously. I guess this is another one in the plans change department. Ziggler was worked on for a lot of the match. Orton made the hot tag but Sheamus took him down quickly. Ziggler came back with a superkick and Sheamus walked right into an RKO, giving Orton the win. Pretty good, basic opening bout.
Rusev got a mic and called Sheamus a stupid non-American and blamed him for the loss. Called him useless. He shoved him out of the ring and started to cut a promo on Lana when Sheamus came back and gave him a brouge kick. Sheamus got a mic and told him to kiss his arse.
They aired a recap video from Raw where Seth Rollins destroyed Corporate Kane’s leg, then Demon Kane came out of the ambulance and destroyed him. Renee then interviewed Corporate Kane and asked about his bum leg. He said he looks at challenges like this as an oppertunity for growth. His voice then grew quiet and mean and mentioned he was here for Seth, and to see the steel cage match, then said he would look for this demon that’s been terrorizing Seth and make sure it wouldn’t bother him tonight. So much for a steel cage match with no interference.
Neville vs. Stardust
Neville did some great spots early. He’s easily one of the most fluid wrestlers in the WWE right now. Stardust got the heat but Nevillve cut him off. Stardust came back and wore Neville’s cape and did a Bo Dallas victory lap. He wore the cape over his head like he was the Green Arrow but Neville cut him off and hit the Red Arrow for the bing. Solid match, but too short to be anything more.
Renee interviewed Paul Heyman. He brought up that as a native New Yorker, this place is special. He compared Big Show to coming in here like he was the Boston Celtics. Tonight, Madison Square Garden becomes city hall for suplex city.
Another recap video is shown from Raw where Paige abanonded Charlotte and Becky Lynch, leaving Charlotte to be pinned by Nikki.
Team Bella vs. Charlotte, Becky Lynch and Paige
So despite cutting mean promos on them and abandoning them on Raw, Paige is back teaming with Charlotte and Becky Lynch. Makes sense in the WWE Universe! They had heat on Becky Lynch for a while before Charlotte tagged in. She was about to put the figure eight on Brie but Paige tagged herself in and they argued. Paige and Alicia Fox worked a bit, then Paige went for a tag and this time it was Lynch and Charlotte who jumped to the floor, refusing to tag. This causes Paige to turn around and walk into a rack attack by Nikki for the win. Match was fine.
Paige cut a tearful promo saying she couldn’t believe her teammates did this to her and she would never do anything like that to her friends, the irony being here that in fact she did do just that on Monday.
Another video package, this time from Smackdown where Reigns merely says “Hell in a Cell”. Then it was confirmed that they would be fighting inside Hell in the Cell at the pay-per-view.
Intercontinental Championship: Kevin Owens (c) vs. Chris Jericho
Jericho talked before the match mentioning how today marked 25 years in the business and how he wrestled in a ten minute draw with Lance Storm in his first match. Jericho mentioned Storm was here and he waved to the audience, as well as Don Callis who was also in attendance. Jericho also mentioned watching his father here play for the New York Rangers, then said win or lose he’ll celebrate with the Jerichoholics after the match. This was good, but it felt like they were doing a 6-8 minute version of a 20 minute match as they were going for big moves and finishes very early. Owens went for a senton but Jericho got the knees up. He goes for the walls of Jericho but Owens escapes. Jericho hits the codebreaker but Owens grabs the ropes. The referee grabbed Jericho back which allowed Owens to hit a superkick. He went for the pop up powerbomb but Jericho turned it into a hurricanrana. Owens poked him in the eye when Jericho went to grab him and rolled him up to retain the title. This was good while it lasted, but felt way too short and rushed.
Big Show was shown looking mean.
WWE Tag Team Championship: The New Day (c) vs. The Dudley Boyz
The New Day came out an cut a promo about the Dudleyz, mentioning how they wear glasses without lenses and shamed them for putting Xavier through a table. Today, the New Day will save the tables. Dudleyz came out but didn’t get that big of a pop. Mostly back and forth until the Dudleyz were going for the wuzzup spot and Xavier shoved D-Von off, allowing them to get the heat on Bubba. He made the hot tag to D-Von as he made a comeback. Kofi was going for a springboard but instead was cut off and given the 3D for what looked to be the win, but then Xavier just ran in and broke it up for the DQ. Hideously lame finish to an otherwise good match.
The New Day set up a table like they were going to put D-Von through a table, but Bubba Ray came back and threw them out of the ring. Xavier was on the top rope celebrating and didn’t see this, so when he jumped off and turned around he, in fact, got a 3D through the table.
Brock Lesnar vs. The Big Show
Big Show started off strong and dominated the match early. He back body dropped Lesnar to the floor. When he came back, couldn’t outpower the Big Show and Show continued to dominate, laying him out with three chokeslams for the nearfall. Lesnar came back and gave him German suplexes but couldn’t get him up for the F5 in what looked like a botch. He hit one more German then pinned Show with the F5. Fun for what it was.
After the announcers plugged that Lesnar would be on Raw, he walked back to the ring where Show gave him the up yours gesture. In response, Lesnar gave him a belly to belly and another F5. They showed Show struggling to get up and get out of the ring. The ring announcer then said “Let’s hear it for the Big Show!” which got a mixed, at best, response as he made his exit.
WWE United States Championship: John Cena (c) vs. Seth Rollins
They teased a spot earl where Rollins climbed over the top but Cena was crawling through the door and grabbed him before he could exit. Mostly some really good back and forth for a lot of the match. Cena started doing his comeback spots but Rollins cut him off with a kick to the shoulder. Rollins taunted him by doing his “You can’t see me” gesture but Cena kicked him in the face, did his comeback and went for the AA but Rollins climbed on the cage. He jumped off but Cena grabbed his ankle and hit the STF. Cena was going to escape through the door but Rollins slammed the door on his head. Rollins went for the pedigree but Cena countered, throwing off Rollins but Rollins ended up climbing the cage again. After throwing off Rollins, Rollins came back and gave Cena the superplex into another suplex spot. Seth climbed to the top but Cena dragged him back to the cage and hit a tornado DDT. Cena went to escape again but Seth climbed on top of the cage and hit Cena with the door. He started to climb over but Cena’s miraculous healing powers kicked in, immediately got up and stopped him. Rollins finally laid him out and was climbing the cage when, as expected, Demon Kane came out and stood where Seth was going to climb off. Seth went for a frog splash instead but Cena dodged it, got up and hit the AA to retain the title. Easily the best match of the show, wouldn’t say it was as great as other matches they’ve had over the summer but this was a really good steel cage match.
Cena made his exit as Kane climbed in and closed the cage door. Seth tried to escape but couldn’t as Kane chokeslammed him then gave him the tombstone. He held the WWE title up high, then exited the cage to close out the show.
Welcome to our live coverage of UFC 192: Cormier vs. Gustafsson from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. The event is headlined by UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Daniel Cormier making his first title defense against Alexander Gustafsson. In the co-main event, it will be light heavyweight contenders Ryan Bader and Rashad Evans squaring off. The original co-main event, Johny Hendricks against Tyron Woodley, was removed from the card prior to weigh-ins due to Hendricks weight cut issues.
The action kicks off with preliminary card fights at 6:30 PM eastern time on UFC Fight Pass. The action moves over to FOX Sports 1 at 8 PM eastern time with additional preliminary fights before the main card kicks off on PPV at 10 PM eastern time. We are looking for your thoughts on the show, so send a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle as well as a best fight and worst fight to dave@wrestlingobserver.com.
Fight Pass Prelims —
HEAVYWEIGHTS- DERRICK LEWIS VS. VIKTOR PESTA
ROUND 1- Lewis is from Houston so he got a big reaction from the crowd. Lewis gets a quick takedown against the fence and they clinch against the fence. Big foot stomps by Pesta. Pesta gets a takedown and moves into side control. Pesta with punches from side control but not doing much otherwise. Lewis rolls out from bottom and they get to their feet. Lewis trips Pesta down but they get up and Pesta scores a takedown. Lewis looking for a kimura from the bottom. They get tp their feet and and tie up against the fence. Pesta gets a big takedown. Lewis rolls to his feet. Pesta with some knees to the body. Both men battling against the fence. Lewis tries a trip but Pesta stays on his feet as the round ends. 10-9 Pesta.
ROUND 2- Lewis lands a big right hand that stumbles Pesta. Pesta goes for a takedown but Lewis sprawls up against the fence. Petsa trips Lewis down to the mat and goes into the half-guard. Pesta moves into full guard and landing punches as the crowd boos. Pesta doing enough to keep the fight from being stood up but not a lot of damage. They are stood up by Kerry Hatley. Pesta goes right back for the takedown and gets it. Lewis works it back to the feet as both men are visibly tired. They break and Lewis lands a big punch. Pesta goes for a takedown but eats some punches from Lewis. Lewis gets Pesta down and is landing from the top but eating upkick. Lewis with some hammerfists and looking for the finish. Lewis lands a big punch and close to finishing. The round ends just before he can get it done though. Pesta may be done as he is slow to get up. 10-9 Lewis, 19-19.
ROUND 3- The crowd comes alive as Lewis came close to finishing. Lewis with a big leg kick. Lewis with a head kick and a punch and he defends a takedown. Lewis landing some fists from the sprawl. Lewis gets in the guard and lands big punches. Lewis gets into mount and is landing big punches and looking to finish. He gets it. Lewis with the big TKO win and the crowd gets loud.
Official Result- Derrick Lewis def. Viktor Pesta by TKO (punches) at 1:15 of Round 3
> FLYWEIGHTS- CHRIS CARIASO VS. SERGIO PETTIS
ROUND 1- Big fight for the younger Pettis against a ranked former title challenger. Cariaso with a body kick and Pettis catches the leg and trips him to the mat. Pettis goes into the guard. Cariaso looking for the neck. Pettis remains in the guard of Cariaso. They get to their feet against the fence. They break. Each land some punches. Cariaso with a body kick and they clinch but break. Cariaso with a body kick and another two. Pettis with a body kick and a jab. They trade strikes. Cariaso with a solid kick-punch combo. Pettis with a body kick and then drops Cariaso with a right hand. Pettis with a series of punches looking for the finish but Cariaso survives. Pettis goes into half-guard and lands a big elbow. Back into full guard for Pettis. Pettis with more punches from the top but Cariaso kicks him away. Pettis ends the round with more punches from the top. 10-9 Pettis.
ROUND 2- Cariaso with a body kick as Pettis pushes him towards the fence. Cariaso with a solid combo. They tie up and Pettis gets a nice trip takedown and into the half-guard. Pettis with some body punches from the top as he looks to pass guard. We have our first round of Ric Flair “Woooo”‘s from the crowd. They are stood up as not much happened on the mat. Cariaso with a leg kick. Solid combo from Cariaso. Pettis lands a leg kick after blocking a head kick. Pettis scores a takedown after ducking a punch. Pettis in side control. Pettis stands on his feet and lands a big butt kick. 10-9 Pettis, 20-18 Pettis.
ROUND 3- Pettis looking very sharp in the first two rounds. Pettis gets a takedown They get to their feet but go back to the mat as Cariaso tries to pull guard. They reverse and Cariaso is in the half-guard and lands a big punch. Cariaso with some punches from the top. Cariaso remains in the half-guard as he tries to pass. Cariaso goes into the guard and lands some punches. Cariaso taking over the final round. Pettis looks for the neck. Cariaso postures up but eats an upkick. Pettis looks like he’s just trying to hold on for the decision. Each man going for a leg lock. Cariaso going for an armbar with ten seconds left but can’t get it. 10-9 Cariaso, 29-28 Pettis.
Official Result: Sergio Pettis def. Chris Cariaso by unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-28)
LIGHTWEIGHTS- FRANCISCO TREVINO VS. SAGE NORTHCUTT
ROUND 1- Northcutt is 19-years-old, making his UFC debut, and got a huge reaction. You know, I’m fairly good-looking, but as Dave tweeted, Northcutt is proof life isn’t fair sometimes. Northcutt got an even bigger reaction when introduced, a lot of hype around him. Northcutt with a side kick. Trevino trips on a spin kcik and Northcutt is going for the finish against the fence. Northcutt gets the takedown and a ton of punches and it is over! Big finish for Northcutt, who backs up the hype in this fight. Trevino protested the stop but it just justified.
Official Result: Sage Northcutt def. Francisco Trevino by TKO (strikes) at :57 of Round 1
Fox Sports One Prelims —
Rose Namajunas def. Angela Hill by first round submission (2:47)
This was over quickly as Namajunas stood with Hill for a while and then took advantage of a Hill mistake, clamping on a rear naked choke on the ground. Hill stood up and Namajunas was her backpack, sinking in the choke as Hill tried to fight her off. Hill was tapping at air and Namajunas got the victory, her first after a very long time on the sidelines.
LIGHTWEIGHTS- ADRIANO MARTINS VS. ISLAM MAKHACHEV
Paul Fontaine here, taking over for RFred, who’s having IC issues in Houston.
Makhachev with early Octagon control. Martins with a nice punch combo at 1:15. Martins dropped him and Makhachev was out cold.
WINNER – ADRIANO MARTINS (28-7) by KO (punch) at 1:46
They showed the Northcutt fight in between fights. The guy could be the biggest star in the sport in a few years. I saw him fight on an AXS.TV show about four months back and it was quite obvious he had serious star potential and he did not disappoint in his UFC debut. Already talk that he could be back in a month or two as he took no damage here.
WELTERWEIGHTS- ALAN JOUBAN VS. ALBERT TUMENOV
Tumenov with a throwdown right away to start but lets Jouban back up. Tumenov staggers him with punches 30 seconds in. Jouban controlling the Octagon but Tumenov landing hard counter punches. Loud USA chants from the crowd at 1:30. Tumenov with a nice punch/kick combo. Jouban lands a series of jabs at 1:45. They exchange head kicks at 2:00 and Tumenov hit with a low blow. Tumenov drops him with a series of punches tothe head. Jouban protesting but he’s about to fall over.
WINNER – ALBERT TUMENOV (16-2) by TKO (punches) at 2:55
FEATHERWEIGHTS- YAIR RODRIGUEZ VS. DANIEL HOOKER
Kerry Hatley is the ref, this could be trouble. Lots of stalling at the start and the crowd booing 1:30 in. Rodriguez with a knockdown but lets Hooker back up. Cage clinch at 2:45 with Hooker in control. Rodriguez with a takedown and right into mount. Hooker escapes and to his feet fairly quickly. Rodriguez with knees from the clinch but Hooker maintains control. Hooker with a takedown at 4:30 but Rodriguez right up and they separate. 10-9 Rodriguez
Rodriguez with a throwdown early but lets Hooker up. Clinch on the cage at 1:15 with Hooker in control. Rodriguez pulled guard, going for a leglock. Hooker escapes and they’re to their feet at 2:00. Rodriguez lands a rolling upkick at 2:30. He had tried that at the end of the last round. Hooker controlling the Octagon but the standup is fairly weak from both guys in the middle part of the round. Rodriguez with a knockdown but lets Hooker up at 3:45. Rodriguez is starting to look tired at the end of the round. Rodriguez with a takedown with 15 seconds left. 10-9 Rodriguez
So if you’re wondering what I mean by a rolling upkick, it’s basically RVD’s Rolling Thunder. Rodriguez hit with a low blow early in the round, which will give him more time to recover. Hooker pressing the action on the restart. Hooker takes his back standing and takes him down at 1:00. Rodriguez takes the leg and working for a leglock. Rodriguez lets that go but takes an arm. Hooker escapes that but Rodriguez has his legs all tied up. Rodriguez landing elbows from the bottom and opens up a cut that starts bleeding heavily. Hooker landing weka punches form the top. Both guys landing a ton of punches at 2:30 but nothing terribly hard. Signficant strikes are 36-15 for Rodriguez. That must be a 3rd round stat, not the whole fight. Rodriguez really landing a ton of strikes to the head from his back heading into the last minute. This may be the rare case where Hooker has been on top the whole time but losing the round. Crowd booing heavily but explode when the ref stands them up at 4:30. Ref stops the action to look at Hooker’s cut. Doctor lets it go. I would hope so, with 30 seconds left. Hooker chases him around the Octagon for the last 3o seconds but Rodriguez should have this one easily. Rodriguez tried another Rolling Thunder at the end.
WINNER – YAIR RODRIGUEZ (6-1) by unanimous decision (30-27 x 2; 30-26)
Rodriguez’ foot was in terrible shape after the fight and she said in his post-fight promo that he may have broken it in the first round. Hell of a performance considering that.
MAIN CARD (PPV-10 PM ET/7 PM PT)
WOMEN’S BANTAMWEIGHTS- JESSICA EYE VS. JULIANNA PENA
Both ladies throwing bombs early. Clinch in the centre early and Pena pulled guard 30 seconds in. Both ladies up 1:00 in and Eye with a standing guillotine. Pena pops out and in control of a clinch. Pena landing foot stomps from the clinch. Pena with a trip takedown at 2:30. Pena landing punches to the head but Eye up quickly. Another cage clinch with Eye in control at 3:00. Pena with a takedown at 3:45 and right into side control. Pena lands a series of hard elbows to the head. Pena takes her back at the end of the round. 10-9 Pena
Pena with some swelling around her right eye from the elbows at the end of the round. Eye goes right to a cage clinch early. Quick separation. Pena with a head kick and follows up with punches but Eye gets a takedown 45 seconds in. Eye not doing much from the top and Pena landing light body punches from the bottom. Crowd getting restless. Eye takes her back at 2:15. Pena works her to front position but Eye with a triangle choke. It’s in tight but Pena defending well. Pena out at 3:30. Pena landing elbows to the head from the bottom at 3:45. Pena tries to get to her feet but gets caught in another triangle choke but she’s on top. Eye gives up the choke and Pena on top in side control. Ref breaks it up due to an illegal knee from Eye. Eye loses a point but the ref starts them on their feet, which is bad for Pena. They trade punches to close the round. 9-9 round with the penatly deduction to Eye.
Pena with an early takedown. Eye looking for a sub from the bottom. Eye with a triangle choke at 2:00 but Pena escapes quickly. Pena takes her back at 2:30 and gets a rear naked choke. Eye escapes but that was close. Pena lands some hard shots to the head at 3:30. Pena with a neck crank at 4:30 but it’s a weird angle. Eye looked almost out but she was saved by the bell. Nearly a 10-8 but I’ll go 10-9 Pena
WINNER – JULIANNA PENA (7-2) by unanimous decision (29-27 x 3)
FLYWEIGHTS- JOSEPH BENAVIDEZ VS. ALI BAGAUTINOV
Bagautinov with early Octagon control. Very tentative standup. Benavidez is landing solid counter strikes while backing up and one of them caused some swelling on Ali’s cheek. Bagautinov with a nice punch combo at 3:15. Benavidez cut around his left eye in that exchange and it’s bleeding heavily. Benavidez falls while throwing a punch but gets up before Bagautinov can take advantage. Benavidez controlling the Octagon in the last minute. 10-9 Bagautinov but close
Corner did a good job stopping the bleeding on Benavidez’ cut. Benavidez pressing the action 1:00 in. Total strikes are 18-14 for Benavidez and both under 40% landed. Crowd starting to boo as neither guy is throwing much of anything and they’re just keeping their distance from each other. Benavidez slightly more aggressive so probably ahead with 1:00 left. Bagautinov tried for a takedown but stuffed by Benavidez at 4:15. Bagautinov with a knockdown, lets Benavidez up and then a takedown right before the round ends. Nothing else happened that round really so I think that steals it for him. 10-9 Bagautinov
Looking at people’s scores on Twitter and it’s all over the place so this is likely heading to a split decision if no one finishes. Neither guy looks good at all though. Bagautinov controlling things early in the third. Crowd booing heavily 1:45 in as it’s a repeat of the second round so far. Benavidez starting to control the Octagon 2:00 in. This fight is terrible. Bagautinov with a takedown at 4:15 but can’t hold him down. I’ve got it 30-27 Bagautinov but wouldn’t be surprised by any score, including 30-27 the other way.
WINNER – JOSEPH BENAVIDEZ (23-4) by unanimous decision (30-27 x 2; 29-28)
Crowd booing so hard you could barely hear Benavidez’ promo. “He’s a really tough guy, you try fighting him”, Benavidez says to the crowd, clearly rattled. Not surprisingly, that did not make the booing go away. In fact, quite the opposite.
HEAVYWEIGHTS- SHAWN JORDAN VS. RUSLAN MAGOMEDOV
Kerry Hatley is the ref again and he’s had a good night so I’m expecting a late stoppage here. Jordan initiates a cage clinch 1:00 in. Jordan with a takedown at 1:45. No one throwing any strikes. Magomedov to his feet at 3:00. Magomedov working for a standing Kimura but Jordan breaks free. Jordan bleeding around his nose. No idea how. Jordan controlling the Octagon at 3:45, stalking Magomedov. Magomedov with a nice kick/punch combo at 4:15. Magomedov with a punch combo at 4:30. 10-9 Jordan
Not sure what happened to my second round writeup but I had Magomedov taking the round rather easily. 10-9 Magomedov
Jordan backs up Magomedov with punches early and goes for a takedown but stuffed by Magomedov. Magomedov working for a choke and gets separation. Magomedov with a head kick and a spinning back kick to the head. Jordan bleeding around both eyes and in very rough shape but still pressing forward. Magomedov lands another head kick, followed by a kick to the body at 2:15. Magomedov up 51-13 in significant strikes. Jordan initiates a cage clinch at 3:00. Magomedov gets separation at 3:45 with a head kick. Magomedov with a takedown attempt but stuffed by Jordan. Magomedov with a nice jab combo at 4:30. 10-9 Magomedov, 29-28 overall
WINNER – RUSLAN MAGOMEDOV (14-1) by unanimous decision (30-27 x 2; 29-28)
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS- RYAN BADER VS. RASHAD EVANS
Bader looks 2 weight classes bigger than Rashad. Like, I’ve seen welterweights that look bigger than Rashad does right now (Hendricks, for instance). Bader controlling the pace early. Bader badly misses a takedown attempt at 1:45. Neither guy landing much but Bader slightly more. Rashad controlling the pace in the second half of the round but Bader landing jabs while retreating. Bader with a kind of half-knockdown at 3:45 but lets Evans up. Evans backs him up with a punch combo and tries for a takedown but stuffed by Bader. Nice punch exchange at 4:45. Close round, 10-9 Bader
Rashad with early Octagon control. Bader with a takedown at 1:30. Bader takes his back but Evans to his feet right away. Bader with another takedown but Evans right back up. Evans’ eyes are both swollen. Evans pushing the pace but Bader again landing punches while retreating. Evans is landing punches of his own though and they’re definitely hurting Bader. Evans with a hard leg kick at 3:45. Head strikes are 19-13 for Bader. Evans rocks Bader with a punch combo at 4:30. Evans with a takedown attempt stuffed at the end of the round. Another very close round. 10-9 Evans
I’ve seen scores of 20-18 either way and some have it tied up. No way either guy can feel they’re comfortably up two rounds. Evans the aggressor early in the round. Evans backs up Bader with a punch combo at 2:15. Evans with another punch combo at 3:15 and tries for a takedown but Bader stuffs it. Bader lands a hard elbows as they break up. 1:00 to go and the round and fight are still up for grabs. Evans still pushing forward. Bader with a takedown at 4:30 but Evans right back up. Evans with a punch combo against the cage at 4:45. Another very close round, 10-9 Evans
WINNER – RYAN BADER (20-4) by unanimous decision (30-27 x 3)
UFC LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP- DANIEL CORMIER(C) VS. ALEXANDER GUSTAFSSON
Cormier pushing the action early and landing leg kicks. Cormier with a slam takedown 45 seconds in and right into side control. Cormier landing rapid-fire punches to the head. Gustafsson works him back to guard. Gus briefly to his feet but brought right back down. Cormier landing body punches at 2:45. Total strikes 43-9 through 3:15. Gustafsson trying for a sub but Cormier fights it off easily and back into side control at 3:45. Gustafsson scrambles to his feet. Gustafsson’s face is all cut up. Gustaffson with a leg kick/body kick combo at 4:15. Cormier slips while defending a takedown at the end of the round. 10-9 Cormier
Cormier with Octagon control to start the round. Gustafsson bleeding under his left eye. Cormier cut as well and chasing Gustafsson around the Octagon. Cormier’s cut is bleeding heavily. Gustafsson with a takedown at 1:30 but Cormier right back up. Both guys siwnging wildly at 1:45 and Gus is hurt. Cormier trying for a takedown but eats a hard elbows to the head. Cormier’s right eye looks terrible. Clinch in the centre and Cormier landing hard uppercuts at 3:00. Nice punch exchange at 3:45. Total strikes in round 2 are 32-29 for Cormier. Gustafsson with a takedown at 4:30 and takes Cormier’s back. Cormier right to his feet but Gus still on his back. Very close round. 10-9 Gustafsson
Again, somehow my third round writeup disappeared but I had it 10-9 Cormier.
Cormier asked his corner “who won that round” and they said “I don’t know”. I’m seeing 29-28 either way on Twitter. Gustafsson shoots for a takedown early but stuffed by Cormier. Gus wants no part of a clinch and backs away. Gustafsson lands a hard body kick at 1:15. Cormier chasing Gustafsson around at 1:30. Cormier bleeding from under his right eye and also from his nose now. Custafsson with a significant cut on the bridge of his nose. Loud DC chants from the crowd. Cormier stalking him at 3:!5. Gus with a hard body kick at 3:30. Gustafsson lands a hard knee to the head at 4:00. This round is really close. Clinch in the centre and Cormier lands more uppecuts. Gustafsson with a trip takedown but lets Cormier right back up at 4:45. Cormier with a punch combo right before the buzzer. 10-9 Gustafsson so all tied up going into the fifth.
Cormier controlling the Octagon early in the round. Cormier with a punch/kick combo at 1:15. They put up a distance travelled stat and Gustafsson had travelled about 30% more than Cormier because he has been retreating most of the fight. Crowd booing at 2:00. No idea why, this fight is great. Cormier chasing him around the Octagon and catches him in a clinch in the centre at 2:30 and lands a few shots before Gus breaks away. Cormier catches him again at 2:45 and lands more uppercuts and knees to the body. Gus breaks away at 3:00. Another clinch in the centre at 3:30 and both guys landing uppercuts. Gus bleeding very heavily. With a minute left, Cormier is winning this round and the fight. 30 seconds left and Cormier peppering him with uppercuts. Gustafsson lands a hard knee to the head with 15 seconds left. 10-9 Cormier, 48-47 overall
WINNER – DANIEL CORMIER (17-1) by split decision (47-48, 48-47 and 49-46)
Scorecards for Cormier vs Gustafsson
This is how the judges saw tonight’s Daniel Cormier vs. AlexanderGustafsson light heavyweight title fight.
Judge Sal D’Amato gave rounds one, three and five to Daniel Cormier.
Judge Kerry Hately gave rounds one, three, four and five to Cormier.
Judge Derek Cleary, the lone judge for Gustafsson, gave Gustafsson rounds two, three and four.
Cormier put over Gustafsson in his post fight promo. Said Gus made him a better fighter and a better man. Said he couldn’t see out of his right eye in the second round but once his vision cleared, he was okay. No call out or mention of Jon Jones.
Gustafsson was interviewed as well. Gustafsson said Cormier can box, he can wrestle and he’s the real champion. He walked out of the cage with his head down.
Thanks for joining Ryan and I tonight. Hope you enjoyed the coverage!
So, after the main event, they aired a promo for UFC 193. This may be the best promo I’ve ever seen. “Every revolution starts with a fight” has got to be a dig at WWE and anyone who sees this will want to watch the fight. Go out of your way to see this promo video.
The welterweight co-main event between former UFC Welterweight Champion Johny Hendricks and top contender Tyron Woodley has been cancelled for Saturday UFC 192 due to weight cut issues for Hendricks, announced by UFC president Dana White on Twitter Friday morning. However, some additional details have been revealed.
Ariel Helwani reported Friday that Hendricks suffered an intestinal blockage Thursday night as well as a kidney stone which caused the cancellation. Ted Ehardt, Hendricks’ manager said the former two-time NCAA champion was rushed to the emergency room and had to be given an IV.
Doing interviews Friday, Hendricks said that he weighed 183 pounds. He needed to get to 171 today, which under normal circumstances would not be much of an issue. Ryan Bader vs. former UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans now moves into the co-main event slot, while Joseph Benavidez vs. Ali Bagautinov has been moved from the preliminary card to the main card.
On Friday afternoon, the story got two new twists as White told Yahoo’s Kevin Iole that Woodley will be getting a welterweight title shot vs. the winner of Robbie Lawler (c) vs. Carlos Condit on January 2nd. Additionally, White said that he now considers Hendricks to be a middleweight.
Hendricks vs Woodley is off the card due to Hendricks weight cut issues.
Your new main card is as follows:
– UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier vs. Alexander Gustafsson
– Rashad Evans vs. Ryan Bader
– Shawn Jordan vs. Ruslan Magomedov
– Jessica Eye vs. Julianna Pena
– Joseph Benavidez vs. Ali Bagautinov
We’ll have live fight coverage all weekend from Houston, TX.
The UFC returns to pay-per-view on Saturday night with another stop in Houston, Texas for UFC 192. They bring a deep card to the Lone Star State for the first event in Houston since UFC 166 in October 2013, with a title fight and other fights with title implications making up the card. The main card airs on pay-per-view at 10 PM eastern time. Preliminary bout action can be seen kicking off at 6:15 PM eastern time on UFC Fight Pass before heading over to FS1 at 8 PM eastern time.
The UFC Light Heavyweight Championship is on the line in the main event as UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Daniel Cormier makes his first title defense against the challenger, Alexander Gustafsson. In the co-main event bout, it will be a title eliminator bout in the welterweight division as former UFC Welterweight Champion Johny Hendricks takes on Tyron Woodley. Also on the card is a light heavyweight bout between contenders as former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Rashad Evans takes on Ryan Bader. Let’s take a deeper look into the action on the card and bring you five storylines to keep an eye on at UFC 192 on Saturday night.
1. Can Alexander Gustafsson unseat Daniel Cormier as the current top of the light heavyweight division?
Alexander Gustafsson is getting a second chance to become the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion in the main event of UFC 192 on Saturday night when he challenges current champion Daniel Cormier. Gustafsson’s title opportunity was met with a lot of criticism as he is coming off of a loss to Anthony Johnson in his last fight, and many thought Ryan Bader and his four-fight win streak should have been the man fighting Cormier. Regardless of that, Gustafsson will be looking to do something he was unable to do in his first title shot, and that is walk away with the belt around his waist. The last time he got this opportunity, he came up just short in losing to Jon Jones in perhaps the greatest title fight in UFC history, at UFC 165 in September 2013. Two years later, he gets a fresh champion in Cormier, who won the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship when he submitted Johnson at UFC 187 in May, which followed the title being stripped from Jones.
Cormier provides Gustafsson with a completely different challenge from Jones, but just an equally as hard fight. Cormier is a world-class wrestler with knockout power in his hands. Gustafsson is going to have a huge height and reach advantage that he will want to exploit. He has to watch out for the dangerous right hand from Cormier, though, something that he ate at the hands of Johnson. Gustafsson had talked about how he considered retiring following the loss to Johnson, and any time that happens to a fighter, you have to question their mental state heading into their next fight. Cormier has also been using his mouth and excellent speaking ability to attempt to get into the head of Gustafsson. Gustafsson has been shaking it off, but it could play into the hands of both men on Saturday night.
Gustafsson is going to have to use his length to keep Cormier away from him. If Cormier is able to get inside the pocket and use his excellent dirty boxing skills in the clinch, it is going to be a tough night in the Octagon for Gustafsson. Gustafsson excels at footwork and circling away from the opponent after his attacks. He isn’t going to out-wrestle Cormier, and he has a hard time eating a good punch. Gustafsson’s three losses have come to Jones, Johnson and Phil Davis, three strong wrestlers with solid punching power. Cormier is another in that line of opponent. This is Cormier’s fight to lose, and I see him being able to finish Gustafsson and continue his quest to goad Jon Jones back into the Octagon.
2. Who stakes their claim to the next title shot at 170 pounds when Johny Hendricks and Tyron Woodley meet?
Former UFC Welterweight Champion Johny Hendricks will meet Tyron Woodley in the co-main event of UFC 192 in a fight that has been many years in the making. It is a battle that goes back to when both men were wrestlers in college. They met in the Big 12 Finals, and it ended in a lot of controversy. It was a close match, but at one point during the match, Hendricks’ fingers ended up in the mouth of Woodley, and there were claims of Woodley biting Hendricks. Woodley was penalized a point, which made the difference in Hendricks winning and then going on to becoming an NCAA Champion twice. Woodley has been wanting another shot at Hendricks since both entered the sport. Woodley has been calling out Hendricks for months, and the fight finally goes down on Saturday night.
It is a pivotal bout in the welterweight division as it will likely determine who fights the winner of the January bout between Robbie Lawler and Carlos Condit. Hendricks lost the championship to Lawler, but he holds wins over both men. Woodley holds a win over Condit. High stakes are on the line when Hendricks and Woodley step inside the Octagon, and it will be interesting how the fight turns out. It could be explosive on the feet, but it also has the chance to be a battle of attrition with battles in the clinch and with the wrestling. Hendricks has been a better overall performer, but recently has lacked that killer instinct that made him the most dangerous fighter at 170 pounds. Woodley has some power as well, but Hendricks has never been finished. Woodley has back in Strikeforce by Nate Marquardt. I give the edge in this bout to Hendricks and pick him to win on Saturday night.
3. Will Rashad Evans be able to shake off the knee injuries when he meets Ryan Bader?
Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Rashad Evans makes his long-awaited return on Saturday night when he meets Ryan Bader, holder of a four-fight win streak. This fight could also have title implications on the line at 205 pounds, as Evans is riding a two-fight win streak himself. Evans has been out of action since a November 2013 win over Chael Sonnen as he has had multiple knee surgeries, in similar vein to Dominick Cruz, but he is finally able to return to action. Bader was chomping at the bits to fight Daniel Cormier for the title, but was passed over in favor of Alexander Gustafsson, and an impressive win over Evans could make a statement that he should be next. Of course, there is Jon Jones laying in wait, which could impact what happens for the winner.
At his best, Evans is one of the best light heavyweights in UFC history, with several big wins and being a former champion. If he is truly 100%, he is a top-five fighter, maybe even top-three alongside Jones, Cormier and Anthony Johnson. A win would almost assuredly mean he will get the next opportunity at the main event winner, even if Jones is getting closer to a return. Cage rust could play a huge factor, but Evans has gone through some periods of time where he has missed an extended amount of action, though the two years is the longest layoff of his career. It will be interesting to see if the knee injuries affect his wrestling skill, which is his best aspect of his skills, but he also has a ton of power. Bader is a good wrestler and has solid striking, but he doesn’t match up well against Evans. This has the potential to be a boring battle as well as Evans may fight cautiously and Bader isn’t the most aggressive fighter. I see Evans taking the win, though, and Bader just not being able to get over the hump.
4. Sage Northcutt makes his UFC debut with a lot of hype. Will he live up to it?
Sage Northcutt is 19-years-old, the youngest fighter on the UFC roster, and he makes his UFC debut on Saturday night. He is getting a lot of hype coming into his debut, especially for someone fight on the Fight Pass portion of the preliminary card. He is from Katy, Texas, a suburb of Houston, and he was featured on Dana White’s new Fight Pass show, “Looking For A Fight”. He is 5-0 in his professional career, one that started less than a year ago. He does have one loss as an amateur, but that came in his very first fight. All five of his wins have come by stoppage, and he has only been out of the first round once.
He’s going to get a lot of attention for his looks as he looks more like a model than a fighter. He has been practicing martial arts all of his life, and he does have an attitude about him. That is why the UFC is drawn to him, the personality, and all indications show that he can become a popular, and hated, fighter, if he can back up his skills. It might be early for a 19-year-old, but it is his chance to show that he is for real. He fights Francisco Trevino, who is coming off of his first career loss that ended his perfect 12-0 record. It will be the first time that Northcutt cuts to 155 pounds, and he gets a tough opponent. He’s being thrown to the wolves right away, but many expect him to live up to the hype. If he does, the UFC has a potential new star on their hands.
5. What else is there to look for on the card?
The UFC 192 card is loaded with 13 fights, and many solid fights. Also on the main card is a heavyweight battle between former LSU football player Shawn Jordan and Ruslan Magomedov. Opening the main card is a pivotal bout in the women’s bantamweight division as Jessica Eye meets former TUF winner Julianna Pena. Eye is coming off a tough loss to Miesha Tate in a title eliminator bout in July, and she is eager to step back in the Octagon and get back into the win column and erase the disappointing memory of the Tate fight. Pena is getting a huge step up in competition in the form of Eye, but she has the potential to compete for the title in the future, and fights aren’t getting easier when climbing the ladder.
Headlining the preliminary card is a flyweight battle between former title challengers as Joseph Benavidez takes on Ali Bagautinov. Also on the card is a featherweight bout between former TUF winner Yair Rodriguez and Dan Hooker, an exciting welterweight clash between Alan Jouban and Albert Tumenov, and Rose Namajunas finally makes her long-awaited return when she takes on Angela Hill. Among the fights that will be airing on Fight Pass is a flyweight battle between former title challenger Chris Cariaso and prospect Sergio Pettis, the younger brother of former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis. The UFC 192 card is truly a deep card for fight fans.
Full UFC 192 Fight Card, Betting Odds and Predictions
MAIN CARD (PPV- 10 PM ET/7 PM PT)
UFC Light Heavyweight Championship: (C) Daniel Cormier vs. (#2) Alexander Gustafsson Betting Odds: Cormier (-340), Gustafsson (+280) Prediction: Cormier by knockout in round 3
Welterweights: (#1) Johny Hendricks vs. (#3) Tyron Woodley Betting Odds: Hendricks (-350), Woodley (+290) Prediction: Hendricks by decision
Light Heavyweights: (#4) Ryan Bader vs. (#5) Rashad Evans Betting Odds: Bader (+150), Evans (-170) Prediction: Evans by decision
Heavyweights: Shawn Jordan vs. Ruslan Magomedov Betting Odds: Jordan (+140), Magomedov (-160) Prediction: Jordan by knockout in round 2
Women’s Bantamweights: (#6) Jessica Eye vs. (#12) Julianna Pena Betting Odds: Eye (+205), Pena (-245) Prediction: Eye by decision
PRELIMINARY CARD (FOX SPORTS 1- 8 PM ET/5 PM PT)
Flyweights: (#1) Joseph Benavidez vs. (#14) Ali Bagautinov Betting Odds: Benavidez (-340), Bagautinov (+280) Prediction: Benavidez by decision
Featherweights: Yair Rodriguez vs. Dan Hooker Betting Odds: Rodriguez (-300), Hooker (+250) Prediction: Rodriguez by submission in round 3
Welterweights: Alan Jouban vs. Albert Tumenov Betting Odds: Jouban (+220), Tumenov (-260) Prediction: Jouban by knockout in round 2
Women’s Strawweights: (#4) Rose Namajunas vs. Angela Hill Betting Odds: Namajunas (-260), Hill (+220) Prediction: Namajunas by submission in round 2
Submitted by PeachMachine for WrestlingObserver.com
In a follow up to last weeks Bellator show, I have no update on the alleged scoring change that was put in place by the California State Athletic Commission. Supposedly the new rule will give judges a means to give more 10-8s, i.e. judges are instructed to give more 10-8s. I have no idea what this means, since they are already allowed to do this already.
For some background, I started/create what I call a True Ten system — an attempt to bring a different type of scoring to MMA.
Bonus Match:
TUF Tournament Show: Aired Wednesday 9/23/15 Gruetzemacher vs. Sharma
I happened to watch The Ultimate Fighter this week and figured I’d give it a scoring. Usually these are two round affairs that only go to a third if the fighters split the first two. This was one of those splits. I can only assume these fights are judged by commission judges in the same way as regular fights. These decisions are kept pretty closely under wraps since they are taped well in advance of the airing.
Official Result: Dana only read the final round scores, and all three had it 10-9 for Gruetzemacher. I’m assuming all three had it 29-28 Gruetzemacher.
This should have ended after the second round. Everyone saw that the third round was going to be a one sided whipping, and it was. If the refs had used the True Ten system, the third round would not have been necessary. Instead, Sharma had to take five more minutes of a beating. This must have been taped before the “rule change” and probably took place in Nevada anyway.
*****
We’ve completed five shows now, and before we get into the sixth part of this series, let’s take a look at some stats to see what this experiment has uncovered.
– Total Official Decisions: 17 (by show 4,3,3,3,4)
– Unanimous: 13 (by show 4,2,2,3,2)
– Split: 2 (by show 1,1,0,0,0)
– Other: 2 (0,0,0,0,2 on Bellator: 1 two round match, 1 Majority Decision)
– Different Outcomes Using True Ten: 0 (0,0,0,0,0)
So far, the True Ten Scoring System has not changed any outcomes. However, we’ve learned a lot about scoring as a whole. The system has definitely created wider margins of victory, but does that matter? I thought we would see a lot more draws than we have, but alas.
*****
For future True Tens, there will no longer be a category for the Pride Scoring System, or the Weighted Round System. I believe it was too big of an endeavor to try and examine multiple new systems at once. So for the remaining shows, I will only present the official result, my result using the same criteria as the current judges called Classic Ten, and the system we have been examining the whole time called True Ten.
On with the show:
UFC Fight Night 75: Josh Barnett vs. Roy Nelson
MIZUTO HIROTA VS. TERUTO ISHIHARA —
– Official Result: 29-28 Ishihara, 29-28 Hirota, and 29-29 Draw
This was the end of the Road to Japan tournament. I did not watch a single match of the tournament. I feel like Hirota won the match, but according to my True Ten score, it was a draw, and ironically, it was scored a split draw. Pretty crazy, especially since one judge scored it 29-29 meaning he must have scored either two 10-8s or two 10-10s. Both fighters received a 6-figure contract. I hope two of those figures are on the other side of the decimal point.
This was a WAR! A great main event that really needed the True Ten scoring system to accurately score this match. Barnett clearly won the fight, and regardless of the scoring system, the right man won.
Final Analysis:
This was a great show with a hell of a fight in the main event. Again, my scoring system did not change an outcome, but it made the winning differential bigger in a few of the decisions. So far, my choice for a scoring system would be just to decide a round winner and not declare points.
